1st Edition

No Child Left Behind and the Reduction of the Achievement Gap Sociological Perspectives on Federal Educational Policy

    424 Pages
    by Routledge

    420 Pages
    by Routledge

    This monumental collection presents the first-ever sociological analysis of the No Child Left Behind Act and its effects on children, teachers, parents, and schools. More importantly, these leading sociologists consider whether NLCB can or will accomplish its major goal: to eliminate the achievement gap by 2014. Based on theoretical and empirical research, the essays examine the history of federal educational policy and place NCLB in a larger sociological and historical context. Taking up a number of policy areas affected by the law—including accountability and assessment, curriculum and instruction, teacher quality, parental involvement, school choice and urban education—this book examines the effects of NCLB on different groups of students and schools and the ways in which school organization and structure affect achievement. No Child Left Behind concludes with a discussion of the important contributions of sociological research and sociological analysis integral to understanding the limits and possibilities of the law to reduce the achievement gap.

    Table of Contents

    Preface

    Introduction

    George Bohrnstedt and Jennifer O’ Day

    Part I: Federal and State Educational Policy and NCLB

    1. No Child Left Behind? Sociology Ignored!

    David Karen

    Part II. Accountability and Assessment

      1. NCLB and the Complexity of School Improvement

    Jennifer O’Day

      1. Double Standards for Graduation Rate Accountability? Or None?
      2. Christopher B. Swanson

      3. Who Counts for Accountability?: High-Stakes Test Exemptions in a Large Urban School District
      4. Jennifer Booher-Jennings and Andrew Beveridge

      5. Inside the Black Box of Accountability: How High-Stakes Accountability Alters School Culture and the Classification and Treatment of Students and Teachers

    Katie Weitz White and James Rosenbaum

    Part III. Teaching and Teacher Quality

    6. AIR, State Policy Activity under NCLB: Adequate Yearly Progress and Highly Qualified Teachers

    Kerstin Carlson Le Floch

    7. Professionalism Under Siege: Teachers’ Views of the No Child Left Behind Act

    Steven Brint and Sue Teele

    8. Teacher Quality: Educational Inequality and the Organization of Schools

    Richard Ingersoll

    9. Teaching Quality as a Problem of School Change

    Joan Talbert and Milbrey McLaughlin

    Part IV. School Choice and Parental Involvement

      1. False Promises: The School Choice Provisions in No Child Left Behind

    Douglas Lee Lauen

    11. When School Choice Leaves Many Children Behind: Implications for NCLB from the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools.

    Roslyn Arlin Mickelson and Stephanie Southworth

      1. Non-Promotional School Change and the Achievement of Texas Students: Possible Public School Choice Outcomes under No Child Left Behind

    A. Gary Dworkin and Jon Lorence

    13. Research Meets Policy and Practice: How Are School Districts Addressing

    NCLB Requirements for Parental Involvement?

    Joyce L. Epstein

    14. Getting Families Involved With NCLB: Factors Affecting Schools’ Enactment of Federal Policy

    Steven B. Sheldon

    Part V. Federal Involvement, NCLB and the Reduction of the Achievement Gap

    15. Learning from Philadelphia’s School Reform: The Impact of NCLB and Related State Legislation

    Elizabeth Useem

    16. Can NCLB close achievement gaps?

    David Armor

    17. Symbolic Uses of the "No Child Left Behind Act": Reaffirmation of Equality of Educational Opportunity or De-Legitimization of Public Schools?

    Mary Haywood Metz

    18. Conclusion: Sociological Perspectives on NCLB and Federal Involvement in Education

    Alan R. Sadovnik, A.Gary Dworkin, Adam Gamoran, Maureen Hallinan and Janelle Scott

    Contributors

    Index

    Biography

    Alan R. Sadovnik is Professor of Education, Sociology, and Public Affairs at Rutgers University.

    Jennifer A. O'Day is Managing Research Scientist and Policy Analyst in the Education Program at the American Institute for Research.

    George W. Bohrnstedt is Senior Vice President for Research at the American Institute for Research.

    Kathryn M. Borman is Professor of Anthropology at University of South Florida.

     

    Reviews

    Kris Sloan, Assistant Professor, Texas A&M University and Assistant Editor, Journal of Curriculum and Pedagogy

    I solidly, even strongly recommend that Routledge consider publish this collection. I would most definitely purchase this book and would encourage others to as well.

    Kristen Buras, Assistant Professor University of Wisconsin, Madison

    The book has the potential to make a significant contribution to the field. It would likely

    be the most comprehensive volume to date.

    Catherine A. Lugg, Associate Professor Rutgers University

    The book is exquisitely timely. To be frank, it’s need as of yesterday. And it’s shelf life should be pretty good, given the target date of 2014 established by NCLB. The book should have a great shelf-life, extending past that date. . . . I STRONGLY recommend this book for publication. It’s timely and should remain so, and fills a critical hole in the research literature.